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Port of Pasco trying to evict Green Power

TheNewsTribune reports provides an update on the Green Power Inc saga, also giving the history and complaints of investors, partners, employees. While money from new sources was used to pay back disgruntled old sources, employees dedicated to the green cuase went unpaid and languished even as Spitzaur and his family lived lavishly.

My take on this is not that Michael Spitzaur Sr. is malicious, but that he is very inept at business and lacks proper ethics. He says that if he is liberated he will step down as CEO and let someone else run the company. I recall him saying something similar several years ago, but he retained control of the company and did not hand it over to someone more capable/ethical.

Here is an excerpt from the Tribune story:

: PASCO -- A troubled, controversial Pasco biofuels company faces eviction and the sale of its plant for failing to pay county property taxes.

: Green Power CEO Michael Spitzauer remains in federal custody after he was charged last month with wire fraud, aggravated identity theft and money laundering. [To which he plead innocent.]

: Last week, Spitzauer's lease expired with the Port of Pasco where he said he was building a plant to convert 100 tons a day of municipal solid waste into liquid and gaseous synthetic fuel.

: Port Executive Director Randy Hayden said the port has started eviction proceedings for a fabrication building, a warehouse bay and the land in the Big Pasco Industrial Park.[...]

: He's accused of defrauding investors of at least $6.7 million in the past seven years, although his debts reportedly total more than $28.4 million including interest, according to court, county and state documents.

: Of that, Spitzauer and Green Power owe at least $5.7 million to Tri-City companies and residents, as well as Benton and Franklin counties.

: A former Green Power employee told the Herald last week that Spitzauer's workers grew disillusioned as they repeatedly were not paid on time while their boss was posting on Facebook about expensive trips and purchases.

: Green Power was an environment of "lies and promises," said the former employee, who is still owed three weeks wages for his work on the unfinished Pasco plant.

: Lies and promises

: Two years ago, Spitzauer was in the Green Power office daily, said the former employee.

: But that changed, and workers would not see him for weeks at a time, said the worker who asked that his name not be used.

: At times, Spitzauer told the staff of about 13 he was out of the state or out of the country, even though in court documents Spitzauer said he has not been out of the United States since 1996.

: Spitzauer's children would bring paychecks to the workers when Spitzauer claimed he wasn't in town. He and his wife have four children ages 10 to 17.

: When paychecks were late or workers were temporarily laid off, employees would see photos posted on Facebook by Spitzauer and his family about visits to Seahawks, Sounders and Tri-City Americans games, the employee said.

: At the same time that Spitzauer was living his lavish lifestyle, workers were struggling to pay their rent and other bills, the employee said. One employee told co-workers that her electricity was turned off while waiting for a late paycheck.

: Court documents show Spitzauer's sons drive a Hummer and have expensive toys, including new gaming systems and more than 100 pairs of athletic shoes.

: The former employee said Spitzauer bought a Mustang Cobra from one of his workers and also a body kit and rims for a Dodge Charger for one of his sons.